Millissa S. Allen
Managing Director, Global Head, Fundamentals of Alternative Investment, CAIA
Millissa joined CAIA Association in September 2013. Ms. Allen, who earned her CAIA Charter in 2012, oversees strategic initiatives to promote the CAIA program and deepen industry relationships throughout the USA and Canada. Prior to joining CAIA, Ms. Allen served as Director of Sales Operations at Hatteras Funds for eight years, where she managed client relationships, orchestrated multi-level marketing campaigns, led sales and marketing training, and managed more than 100 sales-related events per year. Ms. Allen brings tremendous energy, expertise, and innovation to CAIA’s efforts to introduce the CAIA Charter to new audiences and to expand CAIA’s visibility within companies already dedicated to promoting the CAIA Charter internally. Ms. Allen received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Maryland.
Rebecca Fender
Senior Director, Future of Finance, CFA Institute
Rebecca Fender, CFA, leads the Future of Finance initiative, which is the thought leadership platform for CFA Institute. Her group publishes studies to help investment professionals build their careers and serve their clients more effectively. Ms. Fender has testified before the U.S. House Financial Services Committee AI Task Force on the impact of artificial intelligence on investment roles. She speaks regularly at industry events and has been quoted in the Financial Times, Bloomberg, and the New York Times, among others. Prior to joining CFA Institute, Ms. Fender was a vice president at BlackRock working with pension funds and endowments, and she also worked at Cambridge Associates, where she published research about manager selection. She earned her undergraduate degree in economics from Princeton University and holds an MBA from the Darden School at the University of Virginia.
Kim Hayes
Director of Corporate Relations, CFP Board
Kim joined CFP Board in 2021. In her role, she contributes to key initiatives aimed at reinforcing firms’ preferences for CFP® certification and the incorporation of CFP® certification as an important element of their hiring and professional development programs. Before taking her role at CFP Board, Kim served as Director of Financial Planning at Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc. (WRI), where she led financial planning activity and coordinated training efforts for advisors, as well as actively promoting CFP® certification. Ms. Hayes started her career in the financial services profession in 1994, became a financial advisor in 1996 and earned her CFP® certification in 2003. She is proud to be a part of CFP Board, and her career is a testament to the competency, credibility and confidence the certification offers.
Chaitali Patel
Global Director, Impact Collective, 100 Women in Finance
Chaitali Patel is a Global Director and head of 100 Women Impact Collective(100WIC), an Impact Initiative of 100 Women in Finance. 100WIC is a collaborative platform that advances women in the finance industry by creating awareness, builds partnerships to provide business and STEM education, and serves as a connector between the industry and career-ready young women. Chaitali is a highly-reputable social impact, finance and fintech executive. Prior to joining 100 Women in Finance, she was the Chief External Affairs Officer at a US based military family organization responsible for overseeing the revenue development and external affairs teams. She led the B2B finance arm of Fundation Group, a New York-based financial technology firm as head of Catalyst Solutions. During her banking tenure, she held a variety of senior executive positions at major national financial institutions including the Bank of Hawaii, Zions Bancorp, PNC Bank and HSBC Holdings. Her fifteen-plus years in the sector included extensive experience with business strategy, product management, bank operations, channel management and financial reporting.
